Michael Memis In 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed from Spain to try to find a sea route to East Asia, but instead “discovered” America. This has led to many positive and negative effects, some of which were intended and some of which were not. Although people cannot debate the effects of Columbus's discovery, many people have different opinions on whether Columbus should be celebrated for discovering America, as he was in the United States, or celebrated for the heinous acts he committed . They also debate whether the Europeans' horrific treatment of Native Americans was worth the progress that came with it. In Amsco's history of the United States, there is a neutral position towards Christopher Columbus and the European discovery of the Americas (Newman and John M. Schmalbach) have different opinions on the role of Columbus in world history. Zinn thinks Columbus was lucky to discover America. He writes, “Columbus would never have reached Asia, which was thousands of miles further away than he had calculated when imagining a smaller world. He would have been doomed by that great expanse of sea. But he was lucky. A quarter of the way he came across an unknown and unexplored land that lay between Europe and Asia, the Americas. He believes that Columbus made a big mistake and that he would have died for his mistake if not for a little luck. Newman and Schmalbach acknowledge the view that Columbus is lucky, but it is not their view. They write: “Since the 1990s, however, revisionist histories and biographies have been highly critical of Columbus. His detractors argue that Columbus was simply in the right place at the right time. Europe at the end of the 15th century was ready to expand. If Columbus had not crossed the Atlantic in 1492, some other explorer, perhaps [Amerigo] Vespucci or [John] Cabot, would have done so a few years later. According to this interpretation, Columbus was little more than a good navigator and a self-promoter who exploited an opportunity.” They let the reader know that this is coming from a critic of Columbus and not them as they are supposed to discuss the different opinions, positive and negative, that people have of Columbus. Zinn also argues that Columbus discovered the new world only for his own personal gain, using religion as an excuse to prove that he was entitled to it. Zinn writes that “The information Columbus wanted most was: Where is the gold? He had convinced the king and queen of Spain to finance an expedition to the lands, the riches he expected would be on the other side of the Atlantic: the Indies and Asia, gold and spices... He concluded his relationship by asking for a little help from them